Posts in "Activism"

This is only the second semester into the new chapter here at Missouri Southern State University and it is evident that this liberty movement is here to stay. Many students found this YAL organization to be exactly what is needed here in southwest Missouri.

Students participated in a political quiz to see where they aligned on the liberty spectrum. Most discovered that they are Libertarians and didn't even know it. With the help of a cut-out of Ron Swanson we were able to draw attention to the Young Americans for Liberty movement in a unique way.

Many interested individuals, including veterans and members of the student Senate discussed with our members how our constitutional liberties are slowing disappearing.

As we grow as a chapter, we are highly confident as well as optimistic that there will be a reclamation of what has made the United States the land of the free, and home of the even more brave.

We are excited for the rest of the semester and spreading the message of liberty.

YAL at the University of Iowa got the ball rolling this semester with a fantastic Free Speech Wall. This is a go-to for great student involvement and something we all enjoy participating in. You never know what people are going to write, but providing a platform for them to do so is what makes it fun and reminds everyone how important it is to protect our First Amendment rights.

Afterward we headed to a bar for a social. It is great to be able to hang out outside of the classroom and activism events. Socials allow to better get to know the new members that join the organization.

We look forward to hosting more activism events and socials. The message of liberty is strong at the University of Iowa.

The Auburn University YAL chapter is once again pleased to report another wildly successful event. Our recent Volunteerism Potluck generated an outstanding turnout and far exceeded our expectations in terms of the amount of delicious food supplied.

The purpose of this event was to emphasize the importance of cooperation and voluntary exchange between people to the message of liberty. Attendees were encouraged - NOTrequired – to contribute some type of dish to the meeting to share with everyone in attendance. The optional nature of these contributions was heavily emphasized; in spite of this, the meeting featured an almost overwhelming plethora of different foods, illustrating what we at the Auburn YAL chapter believe to be a very important aspect of Libertarianism: the idea that, when given the option, the vast majority of people will choose to voluntarily contribute to the common good without the need for intervention by any government or ruling body.

YAL at the University of Nebraska at Omaha had a great tabling effort on last Thursday Feb. 18th. We had 25 sign ups and promoted our upcoming tabling event Incarceration Nation. The turnout was great and may students were excited to participate in the political quiz.

Everyone used the tools we had learned at the Nebraska State Convention and noticed a major improvement gathering sign ups. We are excited for our next tabling event in March and spreading the message of liberty on campus.

YAL at Stockton is back and ready to bring liberty to the campus. We had our first meeting and discussed our game plan for tabling and what we wanted to focus on. We decided to focus on recruitment in order to build a solid foundation for YAL here at Stockton University.

We expect some challenges at first with students pre-conceived notion of politics. However, we believe that when students get to see what we at YAL are all about, they will gladly join. This was proven during our first tabling event. Students at first were hesitant to approach our table. After we told them about freedom and liberty and what YAL represents, students became eager to learn more.

We passed out several pocket constitutions. We also discussed topics which included the presidential debates. We look forward to a good turn out of new faces at our next meeting.

Freedom of speech has long been a controversial issue in this country; since the First Amendment was first introduced into the Constitution, people have argued what limits should be imposed on freedom of speech. In our time, this argument is nowhere more prevalent then on college campuses across the nation. This past Thursday, the YAL chapter at American University had the distinct privilege of hosting Greg Lukianoff.

Lukianoff, an American University alum, is the current president of the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE), an organization dedicated to preserving free speech on college campuses. Lukianoff explained the efforts made by his organization to promote and protect speech on campuses, something not at all unfamiliar to AU students who hold unpopular opinions.

Lukianoff began by recounting the historical significance of freedom of speech on college campuses; as a graduate of Stanford Law School, he made several references to precedent set by the Supreme Court that either expanded or limited free speech. Lukianoff walked the audience through the sort of work FIRE does to protect free speech on college campuses.

Lukianoff explained, American University has implemented at least one policy that severely restricts free speech on campus. Lukianoff called on AU students to help change the university’s policies. Although Lukianoff has long since graduated from AU, it was clear he was familiar with the university’s speech codes that still hinder students today.

On February 2, the YAL chapter at UCLA did a recruitment drive on Bruin Walk, the hub of UCLAs morning traffic. We began tabling in the morning, and as the day went on the Bruin Walk got busier as more students began walking to class.

We got the attention of students by asking them questions like “Want to end the war on drugs?” and “Are you fed up with police brutality?” Students also took part in a political quiz to see where they aligned on the political map. In the process, we handed out 50 flyers that promoted our meeting time and place.

At the end of the day, the UCLA chapter had acquired several new signups and generated an atmosphere of interest and awareness on campus.

On Wednesday February 17th, the American University chapter spent the afternoon tabling in promotion of free speech. We were eager to illustrate the clear need for free speech, especially on college campuses.

Students were excited to listen and learn about the speech codes in place at American, with many appalled as to how restrictive the administration is with its policies. The cornerstone of the event was to promote a petition created by the chapter to highlight AU’s restrictive polices. Having amassed over 50 signatures in a few hours, we are happy with our results and plan on presenting the petition to members of the university’s administration.

We hope that AU will come to recognize the shortcomings with the current speech codes, and hope they will be amended for the betterment of the student community as a whole.

On February 2nd, the YAL chapter at the University of Wisconsin - Whitewater had its Free Speech Wall. The event went well and we had many people come out and participate. Below is a picture of the chapter holding the free speech wall.

It was awesome this year to see students write more things that were politically related. Other students had positive messages to write on the wall. This event helped us interact with the student body and gave us another avenue to obtain more sign-ups.

Having this event also helped students realize the importance of free speech on campus. We are looking forward to more events this semester and spreading the message of liberty on campus.

Today was our first time tabling at Wake Technical Community College. Although we were nervous at first we proceeded with the event. We set up the tablecloth and put out the constitutions; filled the candy bowl and set up the quiz. The second we asked, "Have you heard of Young Americans for Liberty?" the nervousness went away. Although discussing political issues may seem daunting it was actually really fun.

Students took part in a political quiz to see where they aligned on the political map. The notion that students at Wake Tech aren't politically interested melted away as many participated in our event. We got twenty-one sign ups.

One of our favorite parts of the day came from a man with a thick Eastern European accent, stated that he wouldn't join YAL because he "needed to get citizenship first" and took a pocket constitution so he could study for the test. Another guy said that he was "socially liberal but economically conservative, and there isn't really a party for that." That statement proved why we are part of YAL in the first place: there are liberty-lovers who don't even know they're liberty-lovers.